Good morning Reader!

If you're wondering why the stock market is doing so well while Americans seem to be so pinched by inflation, the answer is technology.

AI is clearly fueling this incredible run in the market even though many consumers are feeling squeezed. Remember, the stock market is NOT the economy.

Interest rates might go up this year and anyone holding onto variable debt will see their payments go up. Higher rates are great when you're a saver, tough when you're a borrower.

We're already seeing high yield savings account and CD rates creep up, even though the Fed never touched rates in their last meeting.

🧑‍🎓 It's back to school season and for folks with older children in college, you may be researching student loan options. Make sure you shop around and don't just take the first offer you see. (same goes for student loan refinancing)

💲 Best Bank Rates (as of 8/12):

💰 High Yield Savings - 3.80% APY + $400 Bonus from SoFi​

🏛️ Short Term Treasury - VBIL 3.61%, SGOV 3.59%

📀 Certificates of Deposit (see all 40k+ rates)

🔍 Below are nationwide rates, CD Valet has local rates which can be higher so click through to double check for your state.

• Best: 9% from Southland Credit Union (9mo Anniversary Special - click All CDs)
• 6 months: 4.20% from Quorum FCU (7 mo)
• 12 months: 4.40% from E*Trade​
• 60 Months: 4.35% from E*Trade ($500 min)

💵 Bank Bonuses - $450 US Bank, $200 Barclays, $400 SoFi, $500 Bank of America & more​

​(View this email as a webpage)​

🤖 How to use AI on your personal finances

I've been playing with AI LLMs (large language models), like ChatGPT, and seeing what it can do when it knows more about our finances.

It's been interesting to see what it uncovers (more on that later) but I wanted to do it while keeping my privacy intact.

Here are the guardrails I've put in place:

​👉 How to Use AI on Your Money When You're Concerned About Privacy​

(I'm new at this too, so if you see any mistakes, let me know!)

📱 Need a free credit score?

Here are 11 ways to check your credit score for free, broken down by bureau, score type, and who can get it for free (anyone can find one that will give it to you).

​👉 11 Ways to Check Your Credit Score for Free​

🗞️ Money Stuff I Found Interesting

Here are some interesting articles you may have missed:

• ⭐ Why We Splurge on Small Luxuries When Money Is Tight [Psychology Today]
• 🌭 Would you eat a $100 hot dog? [WSJ]
• 😂 Cops Imitating Plants Catch 74 Drivers on Their Phones in Six Hours [The Drive] - This shouldn't work but it does because people drive distracted!
• ​How Much Cowboys Paid For A Shot Of Whiskey In The Old West​ [The Takeout]
• ​The 5 people who saved the most human lives in history [Science Focus]

💵 Good Deals If You Need Them

• 📖 I love ReciproCard (free) because it helps you find other library systems you can join, great for apps like Libby.
• Also, if you qualify (age usually), Books Unbanned gets you free library cards from six massive libraries. Then go to ReciproCard to find other library systems.
• ​Check if you're overpaying for car insurance (free checker)
• 📀 Wondering if you have a good CD rate? CD Valet has this APY checker that compares it against their universe of 40,000+ CD rates. Good time to do this.

What did you think of today's email?​
✅ I Loved It! 🟨 It Was Okay ❌ Not My Favorite​

Talk to you soon!

Jim

PS. Taylor Farms is having a rough go lately... first iceberg lettuce, now jalapenos. Be careful out there!

​(see archive of previous emails)​